adminPeter Matambanadzo Senior Reporter
THE Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa observer mission says Africa has the capacity to resolve its own conflicts without external interference.The leader of the Comesa observer mission Ambassador Betheul Kiplagat said this while responding to questions by journalists at the launch of the regional bloc’s mission last Friday.
“We wouldn’t bother ourselves by what we read and what we hear. Africa is always painted differently . . . no one, for example, will tell you that most of the conflicts in Africa have been resolved by the African Union itself not because of outside interference,” Ambassador Kiplagat.
He said Somalia has stabilised through the intervention of the AU not through external interference.
“This is why the African Union commission chairperson Dr Dlamini Nkosana Zuma keeps on reminding all of us that we have African solutions for African problems and this is what is happening,” he said.
Ambassador Kiplagat noted that there were worse conflicts in other parts of the world, but African issues were portrayed as if they were the worst.
“There are conflicts that are worse than that of Africa including number of refugees. I don’t want to give the numbers here, but you never see them being taken to the United Nations Security Council,” he said.
He gave an example of the long-standing insurgency in the Philippines in South East Asia.
“I think we also need to look at this perspective that we cannot keep on talking about conflicts or when there are problems as if they only happen in Africa,” he said. “There is also one major super power we know a couple of years ago its elections were disputed.”
Ambassador Kiplagat was referring to the United States 2000 presidential election where results hinged on Florida after the margin victory triggered a mandatory recount. The case was referred to the US Supreme Court, which ended the recounts, effectively awarding Florida’s votes to George W. Bush and granting him the victory.
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